Device for charging gas generators and the like



March 3, 1936.

T. DE FONTAINE 2,932,564 DEVICE FOR CI IARGING GAS GENERATORS AND THE LIKE Filed Feb. 2, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet l March 3, 1936. T DE T'A E 2,32,564

DEVICE FOR CHARGING GAS GENERA TORS AND THE LIKE Filed Feb. 2, 1933 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 A um-ways Patented Mar. 3, 1936 UNITED ATEN-T orrlee DEVICE FGR CHARGING GAS GENERATORS AND THE LIKE Application February 2, 1933, Serial No. 654,913 In Germany February 10-, 1932' 2 Claims.

This invention relates to a device for charging gas generators and the like.

According to the invention, charging can be effected in a particularly advantageous manner so as to be perfectly uniform, prevent to a large extent the formation of dust and insure agglomeration of the fuel prior to its distribution over the fire bed. The device for carrying out the invention combines furthermore a very simple and suitable construction with low cost and a high degree of safety in operation.

Charging devices for gas producers operating with agitators are known already, in which the height of the raking arms is adjusted relative to the height of the fire bed in the generator shaft, the arms passing as a rule over the surface of the fire bed and can be lifted by means of a suitable device when they or their teeth meet in the fuel layer a resistance exceeding the weight of the agitator. The known constructions suffer, however, from numerous drawbacks. used only in one direction of rotation, so that in gas producers whose grating has the same direction of rotation as the agitator the contents thereof must necessarily pass down in oblique direction whereby unpleasant disturbances in operation may be caused. The known devices operating with agitators develop in addition considerable dust and do not make it possible to arrange the fuel layer in the generator so as to become higher towards the walls as required to prevent burning through. On the contrary, owing to the locally differing resistance of the top fuel layer and the consequent upward motion of the agitator arms, unevennesses will be produced in the top layer, which have a detrimental effect upon the gas as to uniformity in quality. Moreover, in the known constructions the fuel as charged is brought to the fire bed, whereas it is desirable to agglomer- -ate it at least to a certain extent prior to its reaching the fire bed in order to prevent the formation of dust and. to accelerate gas extraction.

The invention eliminates these drawbacks connected with known devices and, in addition, provides for a perfectly novel and highly advantageous operation when charging gas generators.

In carrying out the new charging method a filling device is employed comprising a steepconical rotary filling tube provided at its lower end with a fiat-conical or funnel-like mouthpiece. The filling tube can be raised and lowered to a certainextent in vertical direction to permit adaptation to any level of the fire bed. In the mouthpiece of the filling tube projections are They can be provided which during the rotation of the tube compress the fuel and force it away from the mouthpiece towards the outside or towards the circumference of the generator shaft where it is levelled by the agitator .arms.

Drive of the rotary filling tube is effected by means of a novel coupling in such a way that it is independent of variations in height, the means employed to attain this effect consisting of driving balls sliding in vertical slots of semi-circular cross section in the upper part of the tube and movably secured in a worm Wheel rim in a pivot bearing, the worm wheel rim being driven in known manner by a worm.

Fuel is supplied to the filling tube preferably by means of a bucket wheel mechanism to insure accurate regulation of the quantity of fuel supplied which forms in the lower funnel-like portion of the tube a cone towhich rotary motion is imparted by means of projections arranged in the mouthpiece. The fuel contained in the steepconical portion of the filling tube remains essentially at rest, though the friction of the rotary tube relative to the adjacent zones of the fuel column has a sort of separating effect thereon with the result that the finer and dust particles are brought towards the center of the filling tube Where they form a core of fine-grained fuel which, owing to the gradual enlargement of the tube, drops down when fuel is taken out and passes under the coarse-grained top fuel layer of the fire bed where it is gasified. In this way this dust-containing fuel is prevented from reaching the gas current or from being entrained thereby. The preparatory effect described to which the fuel column in the upper part of the filling tube is subjected may be enhanced still more by the arrangement of driving elements, such as vertically extending projections provided on the inner wall of the filling tube.

The fuel contained in the lower funnel-like part of the filling tube is compressed during the rotation of the tube and forced outwardly, and the gaps produced thereby are continually filled up by fuel dropping down from above. Under the influence of the projection or projections the fuel is finally forced up laterally from the mouthpiece and obtains hereby a concave surface in the generator shaft. During operation therefore the filling tube and its mouthpiece are tightly shut off from the fire bed to prevent the formation of dust.

In order to adapt the new device to any kind of fuel and to regulate the pressure exerted by the agitator on the fire bed at will, the entire filling tube with the agitator secured thereon is preferably suspended from a two-armed lever so as to permit weight equalization. The tube which has double walls for this purpose is cooled by water in known manner.

One fundamental form of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a vertical section of the assembled charging device; Figs. 2 and 3 are, respectively, a section and a view of the filling tube; Fig. 4 is a section on the line AB, of Fig. 3; in a larger scale Fig. 5 is a top view of the filling tube with agitator according to Fig. 3; and Fig. 6 is a section through Fig. 4 on the line CD for showing the assembly of the filling tube and its coupling with the driving device.

Referring to the drawings, the charging device a is supplied with fuel for treatment in the gas generator 0 by means of a bucket wheel mechanism b, and the fuel passes through the filling tube d into the shaft of the generator. For

levelling the fuel in the shaft an agitator Z provided with raking arms is arranged. To permit charging of the fuel from the bucket wheel mechanism 2) without loss a trough-shaped track I is attached to the upper part 6 of the charging device a.

Contrary to the known charging devices operating with agitators, the filling tube d always receives a certain amount of coal which in the funnel-shaped mouthpiece i is compressed by the projections disposed therein and continually forced out while new fuel of equal quantity drops down from above. The projection is preferably constructed in the form of a partition separating the mouthpiece and having a drop-shaped section, the partition extending downwardly below the level of the agitator arms.

By means of the driving balls is running in vertical grooves 11 of semi-circular section and retatably disposed in the inner face of the toothed rim 0 driven by the worm p the upper portion of the filling tube d is coupled with the drive so that the height of the entire filling tube may be altered at will while maintaining rotation of the tube.

To limit the upward and downward motion of the filling tube (1 the ring holding the balls in their bearings and inserted in the toothed rim is provided with semiircular projections 1" which simultaneously serve for removing impurities from the grooves n by scratching them out during the upward and downward motion.

The connection of the topmost portion of the filling tube (1 carrying the drive with the main part of the filling tubehaving double walls for water cooling is effected in a novel and advantageous manner by means of an annular starshaped central body flange-like constructed at the ends of the star ribs and bolted or welded together at the lower portion with the inner jacket of the filling tube d while the outer jacket thereof is pushed over the annular star-shaped body and secured to the flange-like star ribs after the upper member of the outer filling tube wall reinforced by an inner ring it has been attached with the latter to the annular star-shaped body and Welded together therewith. The vertical semi-circular grooves n guiding the driving balls is are milled through the sheet metal jacket out of the flange-like reinforced ends of the star ribs.

This annular star-shaped body is used simultaneously for the suspension of the filling tube and the supply of cooling water. The carrying member w secured to the lever 11 is fastened to the annular star-shaped body while a hollow spindle serving for guiding and water cooling and being provided with a head piece is interposed. As shown in the illustration, the head piece is suspended by means of a strap bolted to a ball bearing bridge from the lower arm of the two-armed swinging lever v whose longer rear arm carries an adjustable counterweight .r. In this way the weight of the device, which is quite considerable, can be compensated and the pressure of the agitator adapted to the nature of the fuel to be treated; furthermore, it can be especially prevented that owing to excessive pressure of the funnel-like mouthpiece or the agitator arms unnecessary and detrimental disintegration of the fuel takes place. Moreover, it is further possible to adapt the height of the filling tube contents to the character of the fuel.

It will be understood that various modifications may be made with respect to the embodiment shown and described without departing from the spirit of the invention which is not limited to gas producers but can be applied advantageously to other spheres, such as to charging blast furnaces where in many respects similar conditions prevail.

I claim:--

1. Apparatus for charging gas producers and the like comprising a rotatable vertically movable filling tube of slightly tapering form, an inverted mouthpiece for said tube having a greater taper than said tube but in the same direction, means for driving the upper portion of said filling tube, said driving means comprising driving balls guided in grooves of semi-circular section, an external driving rim for said balls adapted to enable driving of the tube in different vertical positions, and a ring in said driving rim for holding the balls in position and having semicircular projections limiting the vertical movement of the filling tube in both directions.

2. Apparatus for charging gas producers and the like comprising a rotatable vertically movable filling tube of slightly tapering form, an inverted mouthpiece for said tube having a greater taper than said tube but in the same direction, means for driving the upper portion of said filling tube, said driving means comprising driving balls guided in grooves of semi-circular section, an external driving rim for said balls adapted to enable driving of the tube in different vertical positions, an annular spider on the upper portion of said tube having flanged legs, an inner jacket secured to the lower ends of said legs, an outer jacket fitting said spider, and a ring securing said spider and said outer jacket, said leg portions of said spider having grooves to receive driving balls.

THEODOR DE FONTAINE. 

